Consistent attempts by the US and NATO to cooperate on ballistic missile defenses have long divided Russia and the West. The failed talks on this issue have built a foundation of frustration that has reinforced the general lack of trust among the parties on this issue.

In the midst of growing tensions with China, Japan is deepening its strategic engagement in Southeast Asia. Preserving stability in the South China Sea, which is threatened by renewed frictions around contested territories, is a vital interest for sea lane-dependent Japan. Moreover, Tokyo considers Southeast Asian countries as crucial partners in balancing against an increasingly powerful and more assertive China.

At the time of the 50th anniversary celebrations of the Elysée treaty in January 2013, the Franco-German defence cooperation is not at its best.

In an effort to preserve its global leadership, the United States has engaged in a “double rebalancing”; a geopolitical rebalancing, as illustrated by the “pivot to Asia,” and a rebalancing of means, with the Obama administration increasingly advancing diplomatic and economic negotiations (economic statecraft), emphasizing the indirect uses of military force and opening up reinforced dialogue with new actors.

The French Institute for International Relations (Ifri) and The German Marshall Fund of the United States - France (GMF) have partnered to launch a joint research program on the transformations of U.S. leadership by the year 2020. 

Although defense spending is the fourth budget item in France, it is rarely a matter of public debate. During the past three decades, defense has been affected in turn by the desire to rip the benefit of the post-Cold War “peace dividend”, the professionalization of 1997, and the increase of overseas operations after September 11, 2001.

A funny thing happened in the last few years when no one was paying attention. J.R. Ewing, the legendary Texas oilman, and his wife Sue Ellen sold Southfork, their ranch near Dallas, and moved to a new home in Pennsylvania (Northfork?). JR immediately began buying subsurface mineral rights for acres of land above the Marcellus and Utica shale formations in the Appalachian Basin. Cliff Barnes, J.R.'s nemesis, sold all his Texas properties and moved to North Dakota, where he started leasing mineral rights to acreage above the Bakken shale play.